Wildfire
by SadKiddo
Summary: To the gaze of Ayano, that of which was now blurred by rage, hate, and jealousy, her situation seemed like an understandable time to let out her inner self. Nonetheless, it wasn't anything she couldn't handle, surely. But she was way off track this time.


**Wildfire**

She felt her heart skip a beat as she saw him.

Everything about him was perfect.

The way he walked, the small smile planted on his face, the way one of his bangs covered part of his eye . . .

She couldn't find one flaw.

In a blur, Ayano realized at the last possible moment that he was walking in her direction, and immediately panicked. However, she couldn't move from that specific spot. No matter how hard she tried, she seemed to stay stuck to that one location.

Once Taro was in front of her, he didn't stop in his steps to form a conversation, but he did wave and say a quiet, "Hello, Ayano-chan."

His voice gave her goose-bumps. She couldn't even return the greeting, simply stood there observing his every move.

Moments after he had left the area around the fountain in the center of the school, Ayano still couldn't move a muscle.

But, realizing that she was about to be late, she snapped out of her trance and scurried to her class, trying in all ways she could to hide her blush.

* * *

Ayano stared eagerly at the second-hand of the clock as it gradually made its way to the top center.

She was practically in the position of a runner about to race in her chair, not even paying attention to the teacher's lecture anymore.

Right as the bell echoed throughout the school, the instructor dismissed the class and Ayano darted out of the classroom, ending up being the second one out.

* * *

She got there before Taro did, luckily, so she simply hid behind a tree, awaiting his arrival. She knew that he sat by his lonesome every day on the fountain during lunch, but he didn't seem bothered by it one bit.

It wasn't like Ayano to believe that his appearance or what he _seemed_ to be okay with was what he actually _was_ okay with, but people actually talked to him; whenever they asked to sit with him during lunch, he'd either politely decline or either against his will say yes but then it being more of a one-sided conversation.

He seemed to be more interested in his fantasy world than in reality, if you paid close attention to his eyes while he sat alone; which Ayano most definitely did.

And soon enough, there he was, walking in through the open double doors, bento box in hand.

Ayano's attention span increased as he walked closer to the central fountain, and she spectated every step he took just like earlier that day.

Seconds after he entered, he was seated in his usual spot on the stone decoration, removing the lid from his lunch.

 _I'm going to do it._

 _I'm going to talk to him._

Determined, Ayano took a single step forward, soon accelerating her speed to a normal walking pace.

Taro didn't react to her presence before him until she was right in front of him, and when he did he didn't seem shocked; simply turning his gaze and smiling calmly.

"Good afternoon, Ayano," he said, his tone sending butterflies into Ayano's stomach, except worse.

It was more like dragonflies darting around and bumping into each other.

"H-hey, T-Taro . . ." was all that she could manage out. "D-do you think that . . ."

 _Come on, Ayano!_

 _Spit it out!_

". . . that I could . . . eat lunch with you?"

Once the last word escaped her lips and flowed through the air for Taro to hear, she internally winced as she awaited his response.

He simply smiled again scooted over a bit on the fountain edge.

"Sure," he replied.

Ayano suddenly went lightheaded, but she subconsciously sat down beside him.

For a moment or two, she observed his every movement, watching as he politely and silently ate his lunch.

But when Taro turned to look at her, she quickly averted her eyes, just for them to return to the same position when he began to talk.

"Hey, don't you have a lunch, Ayano?" he asked. Ayano could sense the concern in his tone.

"U-uh . . ."

She glanced down at her hands, which were empty of anything. She went back to the uncomfortable and self-conscious side of her mind.

"Well, no . . . But I-I'll be fine . . ."

Her intention was to make him not worry, but it seemed to produce the utter opposite effect.

"Do you want me to get you something?" he offered generously.

"N-no . . ."

Before she could stop him, Taro picked up a napkin from the bento, then used the utensils laying by it to slice the rice ball in one of the sections of the box in half. The scent of salmon leaked out and drifted towards Ayano, causing her to suddenly realize that she was hungry. He used the same chopsticks to move it onto the napkin, which he then placed in Ayano's hands.

The jet-black-haired female stared at her palms now holding part of his lunch in a mixture of shock and guilt, then raising her gaze doubtedly.

"I-I can't take this from you!"

She was on the verge of giving it back to him, but he could tell of her actions early and held her arms in place.

Every nerve in Ayano's body turned into a feather at once.

"Please, just have it," he said softly. "I would feel worse if you starved."

He removed his hands from her wrists and handed her a spare pair of utensils.

Hesitant, she accepted and decided to go along with it.

The two ate in silence for half of the lunch period, with Taro deciding to think, instead, and Ayano secretly debating in her head what she should say.

The first thing that came to her mind and out of her mouth was, "Is there a reason you always daydream?"

Taro seemed to be confused by her question at first, but then he smiled again.

"I guess there's no actual 'reason,' but I just think that my own world is better than the real world," he replied thoughtfully.

Ayano didn't know whether to feel sympathy or shock. It was slightly expected by her that the quieter students go through a more difficult time in their actual life, so she didn't know why she was surprised.

"You, too, huh?" she mused. At first, she was just trying to seem understanding of his way of thinking, but once it escaped her lips, she realized that it was how she felt, too.

He nodded, looking away again.

"I just wish I could actually visit my imagination . . ." he thought aloud. "It must be nicer there . . ."

She watched his every movement as his gaze fell to his feet.

"But sadly, I'm never going to see it."

"You never know," Ayano interrupted.

Taro looked at her in confusion once more.

"What?"

"You can always believe," she answered. "There's no harm in believing."

He stared and stared, causing Ayano to wonder if she said something wrong.

But once he grinned and said, "I guess you're right," then she smiled back.

A genuine smile.

* * *

Ayano went to her next class practically as still as stone.

Her stomach was seeming to float when she thought of their lunch together.

She had a hard time with paying attention during the last two hours of the day, and it wasn't taken unnoticed.

Her teacher, Rino Fuka, asked if she was feeling okay during one part of the class. Ayano felt like the strange pitch and stuttering suddenly included in her voice made her suspicious.

Nonetheless, she let her go and dismissed the class without any further questioning at the 3:30 bell in the afternoon.

* * *

Said love-struck female was currently dashing through the halls, not even stopping if someone got in her way.

Once she got to the corner by the lockers at the front of the school, she slid to a stop, not knowing for sure if Taro was right there or not.

Ayano peeked around the wall, just to see him removing belongings from his locker and putting them into his backpack.

She quieted her breathing, not moving one bit.

A high-pitched call broke the atmosphere. As a reaction, Ayano jumped backward, thinking someone would see her, but due to her instinctive action, she hit her back against the wall, sending small waves of pain through her body.

She bit back the urge to say something, knowing it would blow her cover and make everything awkward.

Either way, she watched with a glare as _she_ ran towards Taro.

" _Taro!_ "

He, himself, seemed to prevent a sigh from escaping his lips as she called him a second time.

" _Baka! You were supposed to wait for me outside of my class!_ "

Swinging his bag over one of his shoulders and resting it on his back, he turned to face his childhood 'friend': Osana Najimi.

She had stopped running and instead was stomping to him, hands clenched in fists. She had already gotten her backpack, probably so she could scold him without interruption, Ayano figured.

Once Osana finally reached him, she lightly punched his arm, not intending to hurt him but to express her frustration with him.

Ayano's expression suddenly darkened, her heart rate increasing and her hands beginning to twitch.

"I'm sorry," Taro said calmly. "I had to see a teacher."

Osana crossed her arms, clearly not impressed.

"It's the truth."

She raised an eyebrow before returning to a normal standing position.

"Fine. I believe you."

She tugged on his arm, pulling him with her to the entrance.

"Come on."

Ayano snuck behind them, leaning against the wall outside the front doors casually.

Right before they turned at the gates to walk home, Osana glanced behind her in coincidentally Ayano's direction.

She immediately regretted it.

Ayano's eyes were dark and empty, bangs hanging over parts of them to unintentionally make her more intimidating. She cracked each knuckle on both hands one-by-one. Not to mention the frightening grin plastered on her face.

Osana's fire-colored orbs suddenly widened.

She unexpectedly unhooked her arm from Taro's, spun and darted back inside of the gate marking school grounds, automatically looking at that specific spot on the wall where the murderous figure stood.

But Ayano was already gone.

* * *

She didn't hesitate one second in following and basically stalking Taro and Osana from the shadows.

For once, to her appreciation, she didn't get caught in the process.

Right before they had to go their separate ways, Osana stopped him.

"I-I was wondering i-if you c-could give me y-your phone number . . . ?" Less than a second later, she added, "J-just in case something happens! Don't think I like you or anything, b-baka!"

Ayano was tempted to stomp over there and knock Osana unconscious, but she fought the urge.

She, of course, already knew the answer to that; long story short, she listened to when one of his other friends outside of school asked him, and then wrote it down on her arm.

It's a contact name on her list, but she never actually clicked on it; except for when she was memorizing his phone number. Taro knew that she had him on her phone, from the recent event of Ayano greeting him through text.

She practically memorized that, too.

 _'Hey, Taro-Senpai!'_

 _'I'm sorry, but who is this?'_

 _'It's Ayano.'_

 _'Well, hi.'_ A few seconds later, he had asked, _'How did you get my number?'_

 _'Your friend gave it to me.'_

 _'Oh.'_

Ayano sadly stared as he gave her a sticky note after writing something down on it.

"Here," he said with a small smile.

"Th-thank you . . ."

Osana gently took it from his hand, then told him goodbye before running to - most likely - her house.

Taro continued to his own residence, which was in the same neighborhood that Osana took off to.

And finally, Ayano turned in the opposite direction and slowly walked home.

 _What could I do this weekend?_

* * *

Weekend mornings were always dull and boring.

It was Sunday, so there was nothing on Ayano's 'To-Do' list to take up her time, for she had already done the small amount on Saturday.

But it was better than being forced to go somewhere she wasn't welcomed and where everyone, with a few exclusions, was annoying and oblivious to the real world.

Instead, she stared up at the ceiling for a while, not having anything better to do. She thought of what Taro was doing.

 _I wonder what he's doing to have a better day than me._

Questions she couldn't prevent from pouring into her brain filled her with inexplicable fear.

 _What if he's upset with me?_

 _What if he's in danger and I can't do anything to stop it?_

 _What if he's . . . with another girl?_

The last thought left her with a pain in her chest.

She glanced at her smartphone, which was sitting on her nightstand.

 _I could try to text him . . ._

Ayano contemplated everything one last time before hesitantly reaching for the electronic device.

 _. . . if he hasn't blocked me already._

She entered her lock-screen code and then tapped her right thumb on the Messages tab. She clicked on the first contact on the screen, thinking for a bit of what she could say without looking _completely_ crazy.

Soon enough, she lightly bit her tongue while typing, ' _Hey, what are you doing today?_ ' She winced as she pressed 'Send', right away waiting for a response.

Two minutes passed with still no reply.

And another two minutes.

Another.

By the tenth minute, Ayano was beginning to be concerned. But she didn't want to text him again.

Four more moments ticked by.

Still nothing.

That was when she chose to do the first thing that came to her head.

She moved, along with her phone, to the wooden desk on the other side of the room. Cutting on the computer, she typed another password to be led to the desktop. Ayano opened her searching browser and then looked up multiple phone trackers.

Website after website, she clicked on each link all the way down the page. And on each one of them, she added Taro's number.

She ended up multi-tasking and searching on her phone, as well.

She was becoming frustrated when barely any of them worked correctly.

Once she even threw her phone across the room when it said that his location could not be found. Unlike usually, she didn't regret it and continued to search on her laptop, no longer typing his number on two electronic devices.

Overall, only one of them worked without her having to sign up for membership, which she chose not to do, and according to that one website, he was in Tokyo.

Ayano's teeth gritted, something telling her that he was with someone else.

* * *

For the rest of the afternoon, she couldn't think of anything to do.

Taro was filling her mind to the point where she could dart out the door any minute searching through Tokyo until she found him.

Anything it took.

Ayano had attempted to do her homework, multiple times, really, but each time she simply sat at her desk with her hands in fists, wishing she could see him.

And the one time she actually was able to think of an answer, thoughts of what Taro could've been doing made her clench her fingers around the wooden writing utensil until it snapped in half.

Soon enough, she had just given up and sat on her bed to read manga.

* * *

The next morning, Ayano, as usual, was the first to arrive at Akademi High School and waited on the wall by the entrance for him to come. The one who had occupied all her time on the weekend.

Right as she saw Taro enter through the open school gates, Ayano jumped and then dashed from her waiting spot to greet him. When he noticed her coming towards him, he paused in his steps, smiling warmly.

She couldn't stop herself from hugging him as if her life depended on it. Which it technically did.

Taro returned the hug, but not nearly as much as Ayano was.

"Hey, Ayano-chan," he said, unnoticeably waiting for her to let go of him. But at the same time, he enjoyed every second of it.

After a few more seconds, she got back to a normal standing position, staring at him with an uncontrollable grin.

But her expression soon faded.

"Where were you yesterday?" she questioned.

Taro seemed to sigh.

"Oh, Osana-chan made me come to Tokyo with her, and so I was in the city all day . . ." he said, exasperation just barely leaking into his tone. "Sorry I didn't respond to your text. All my right hand was doing was being pulled by Osana."

Ayano forced her neck to not twitch.

"It's fine," she managed out.

Little did he know that she was holding back a grin right then and there as she was thinking about what she was going to be doing later.

 _At least he didn't block me,_ she remarked on yesterday, trying to look on the bright side.

She walked alongside Taro as he went inside the school.

"So . . . Did you enjoy yourself?" she asked.

He calmly put in the combination to open his locker.

"I guess it was better than staying in the house reading all day like I usually do."

Ayano began to wonder whether the books he read made an impact on his vivid imagination and desire for fantasy in his real life.

"Do you think that controls your daydreams?"

Taro shrugged.

"I don't know. It might," he replied.

Once again, the raven-haired female stared carefully as he put down his backpack and put his supplies in his locker.

But it wasn't supplies.

It was all books.

She got a glimpse at some of the covers. They were all either fantasy, supernatural, or science-fiction.

In total, there were four books in the iron cabinet by the time he closed it and attached the lock back to it.

Ayano looked back at him, just to see another story in his hand.

"Well, I was going to read on the fountain, if you don't mind."

"I-I don't mind . . ."

Although, she really did.

She would've spent the whole day with him if she could. She wanted to at least stay with him as much as she could.

But she didn't want to seem too clingy for him. He needed his independence, and she could see that.

"Maybe we could meet up again at the end of the day. By the lockers?"

Countless questions turned into a large mess of chaos inside Ayano's brain.

"B-but . . . What about lunch? And isn't Osana going to be annoyed with you?"

"I need to help a teacher with something during lunch, and Osana isn't here today; as far as I know, at least."

That last fact was an automatic stress-reliever for Ayano.

"If she were I would've already been dead," he mused, slightly laughing.

His laugh was soft and clear. Perfect, just like the rest of him.

 _And if that happened, then_ she _would already be dead._

Ayano somewhat smiled, trying to play along.

"I'll see you later, Ayano-chan. Have a good day."

He grinned one last time before walking through the open doors leading to the plaza of the school.

"B-bye, Senpai . . ."

* * *

The whole school day went by slowly and uneventfully.

The light that brightened Ayano's day was only spotted in the hallway once, when normally he was seen quite a few times.

When it was lunchtime, she proceeded in what she did all school year; walking around and observing everyone's behavior.

The most common place she was found during lunch was on the roof, so if anyone wanted to find her, she was there.

Not like anyone cared enough to look for her, anyway.

Ayano walked to the part of the roof that no one stayed by, and rested her arms on the railing, staring into the distant sky.

 _I bet it's calmer up there . . ._

She breathed in the cool, spring breeze gracefully flowing past her.

It was a nice day for a Monday.

Or maybe it was because the attitude for that specific day of the week drowned out the actual atmosphere around her.

Both were reasonable.

She only had to survive less than three hours.

She could make it . . . right?

* * *

Luckily, Ayano made it through her afternoon classes without losing her sanity.

Koharu _did_ look at Ayano suspiciously, however, when her fingers began slightly twitching when she attempted to write. But she didn't consider it enough to question it, so she didn't.

She was currently waiting by Taro's locker, watching as multiple students walked past in the hallway or on their way to their own locker. Soon, one of those individuals would be Taro.

Once he finally came into view, she fought back the temptation to jump happily and run towards him; so she instead stayed in place, casually staring as he neared her.

"Good afternoon, Ayano," he said calmly.

"H-hello, Taro-Senpai," she stuttered, then wanted to slap herself in the face. She was specifically telling herself to not call him that in real life.

Fortunately, he didn't consider it enough to stop and question it, so he simply opened his locker as normal. He removed the four books from the built-in shelf, instead putting them into his bag.

His eyes suddenly widened and he began searching restlessly in each pocket of his school bag.

"What's wrong?" Ayano asked, fear dripping into her tone.

"My book . . . It's not there . . ." he replied, not even pausing in his search.

"Do you want me to go look for it?" she offered.

Taro looked up at her, guilt written on his face.

"N-no . . . You don't have to do that . . ."

"Where's your classroom?" she questioned willfully.

"It's classroom 3-2," Taro answered, zipping all the pockets closed with a sigh. "I left it on my desk, probably."

"O-okay . . ."

Before he was able to raise his gaze back up to her, she was already dashing down the hallway leading to his class.

He swung his bag over his shoulder, leaning against the locker to patiently wait.

"Taro-Senpai!"

As a response to his name, he looked in the direction of the source, just to see his classmate, Kokona Haruka standing before him.

"Do you still have my pen?" she asked, remarking on when he had to use a writing utensil during class.

"Oh, yeah. Wait one second."

And with that, he sat his backpack on the school floor once more, searching through the front compartment. When he finally found it, he removed his hand to reveal a black ink pen.

"Here," he said with a smile, holding out his hand. "Thanks for letting me borrow it."

Kokona happily removed it from his grasp, placing it in her own school bag.

"No problem!"

After a bit of awkward silence, she spoke again.

"Have you been outside since lunch? The weather's nice today."

"No, actually. I was with Sensei during lunch," Taro replied, calm and collected.

"Well, you should come outside right now!" Kokona suggested, her tone somehow making Taro feel that it wasn't a choice.

Before he could turn down her 'offer,' she practically pulled him by the arm to the entrance doors.

"Come on!"

 _It's okay_ , Taro convinced himself. _Ayano will see me outside . . ._

 _Hopefully._

He instinctively took a deep breath, a smile lining his lips as he finally got to enjoy the nature around him.

Kokona secretly grinned at his reaction, wanting to make him happy so he'll at least consider her.

"So . . . Do you want to eat lunch together tomorrow?" she forced herself to ask.

That was when the raven-haired male began to hesitate.

"Uh . . . Well, someone already wanted to eat with me tomorrow . . . Maybe Wednesday?"

"Who is?"

"Ayano Aishi." He said it more like a question than a statement. "Do you know her? She's an underclassman."

" _Her?_ " she said in shock. "Isn't she the weird one who always stays by herself watching everyone? How do you get along with her?"

"She's not that bad when you get to know her . . ."

"Okay . . ." Kokona's mood suddenly changed as if someone had flicked a light switch. "Well, I'll stay with you during Wednesday lunch, then."

That was, coincidentally, when Ayano came back.

"Taro, I found . . ."

She stopped dead in her tracks.

Her legs began to wobble from underneath her.

She couldn't be seeing this.

She couldn't.

Kokona stood before Taro, smiling seductively and entwining her fingers together behind her back.

Ayano suddenly felt her old self coming back to haunt her.

No . . . She couldn't let her come out.

Not now.

She had caused enough damage last time.

She couldn't hear what they were talking about.

Whatever it was, she didn't like it.

Before she could do anything to stop herself, Ayano dropped the book in her hands against the stone and darted back into the school.

If he saw her, she wasn't going to turn back. If he didn't, it wouldn't have changed anything. She was still going to get her revenge.

Somehow, someway, she was.

With his perceptive eyes, it was obvious that he had at least caught a glimpse of her move into the building.

Ayano ran past the remaining individuals at their lockers.

Slid between the males' conversation on the right side of the hallway.

Some of them questioned if she was okay, blocking her way.

It just caused her to become more strained.

Taro's calls were becoming audible.

She pushed past the last guy who attempted to stop her, the impact slamming him to the side, almost colliding with the wall.

She could feel their eyes staring at her in confusion as she continued down the hall, turning left at the girls' bathroom. She didn't even slow her pace once she was inside; using the second wall that supported the sinks on the other side to swing around it, so Taro couldn't tell she was inside.

To help calm her quick, heavy breathing, she covered her mouth so she had no choice but to breathe through her nose. She froze as still as pavement as she heard his footsteps reach the end of the corridor, just to stop for a few seconds.

The world was utterly silent for a bit, before Ayano heard Taro turn and go back the other way.

She quietly sighed in relief after removing her palm from her face, leaning her head against the wall behind her.

 _What am I going to do now . . ._

She tried extremely hard not to let her inevitable unlocked self come out and go on a killing-spree right then and there.

She really did.

Ayano still felt _her_ emotions; it was uncontrollable.

Envy.

Hurt.

Rage.

Jealousy.

They made her grit her teeth and bring tears to her eyes.

Her hands formed fists, which she then pounded against the wall behind her.

"Taro . . . will . . . be . . . _mine_."

And then she raised her gaze to face straight ahead, her teeth showing in a sadistic grin, eyes hollow and empty.

* * *

She stared into the darkness of the night. She never bothered to turn on the lights anymore.

She internally wished she knew where Kokona's house was located before burying her face into her pillow.

 _I want my Senpai back . . ._

With a sigh, Ayano raised her gaze to the dark abyss otherwise known as her room, gray orbs still blank.

She had frightened a few students on her walk back home, all because she was infuriated; especially when they noticed she was clenching a pair of scissors between her fingers just to calm down.

She probably could've bent the metal if she had tried hard enough.

She was lucky that not many people from school had the same route going home.

Ayano turned over on her side so her back was to the wall.

 _Oh well . . ._

 _Tomorrow's a new day . . ._

Her eyelids began to become heavy, and she strained to stay awake. But fighting with her subconscious self never ended her way, so she simply stopped and felt sleep drift into her.

* * *

She awoke to the beeping of her alarm clock tearing her dream apart like a lion attacking its prey.

Her immediate reaction was her eyes snapping open, but they gradually closed halfway when she saw her same bedroom.

Ayano practically slammed her hand on the Off button with a groan, laying her head back down on her pillow.

Once the alarm was off, her ears adjusted to the second familiar sound of rain droplets repeatedly beating down on her window.

 _Perfect day to rain,_ she mused mockingly, reluctantly swinging her legs over the side of her bed.

She wasn't looking forward to school that day.

Not one bit.

* * *

Ayano didn't even put on her rain jacket.

And she already didn't have an umbrella.

All she added to her school uniform was a black jacket. The fabric was quite thin, too.

But she couldn't care less.

She openly stepped out of her front door, taking in the cool, crisp air accompanying the rain.

Ayano walked by the side of the house, removing her transportation source from the bike rack.

Moving the bicycle with her towards the street, the grass below her feet wet her shoes, but her expression remained the same.

She positioned herself on the rain-covered bike and stepped on the pedals, causing her to move forward. She made sure to breathe in as much of the atmosphere around her as she could, knowing it would be the only tranquil time she would meet that day.

The many houses and shops passed her as she fixed her gaze straight ahead, not altering it one bit.

Once Ayano was near school grounds, she heard someone call what sounded like her name.

"Ayano-chan!"

She knew that voice anywhere.

She automatically put on the brakes, looking in every direction for where the source was located. Soon after, she noticed Taro standing a few feet behind her on the sidewalk, umbrella in hand.

Her pupils immediately grew in size upon seeing her crush walking towards her. She got off of her bike and came to a stand, holding it by the handles so it wouldn't fall.

Right when he reached her, Taro stood right next to her, therefore holding the umbrella over both of them as well.

Ayano felt her chest stiffen.

"Here. I don't want you to catch a cold."

She didn't move; couldn't, as a matter of fact.

Before beginning to move forward again, she moved her and her bike onto the sidewalk so they wouldn't be that far apart.

They walked alongside one another, slowly turning the corner to advance up the street leading to the school.

Ayano could only stare at the walkway they were traveling on; if she looked at him, she would break down and end up running away. Taro stared at her in sadness and slight guilt, not helping but feel it was his fault she had gotten upset.

"What happened yesterday?" he asked quietly, having to force some courage to say it.

The female beside him wrapped her fingers around each other, now looking down at her hands.

"I just overreacted . . . That was my own fault . . ."

She would've been more than happy to blame Kokona for her behavior, but she didn't want to seem like the type that points fingers for the cause of their own actions.

"Overreacted about what?" Taro questioned in concern, clearly wanting to help in any way he could.

Talking about it now, it pained Ayano to explain or say anything about it. But she wasn't going to get out of this one.

". . . It's okay. I'm better now."

"Why won't you tell me?"

"Y-you don't have to worry. I'm over it."

" _Ayano!_ I just want to help you!"

Before either of them could do anything, Taro removed both of Ayano's hands from the bicycle handles and placed them in his own.

They could both hear her bike slam to the rain-drenched sidewalk, but neither of them cared enough to pick it up or react.

Her eyes widened, a light blush painting on her face. She let her gaze fall to their palms touching, not feeling real.

"Let me help you," Taro insisted stubbornly, looking her in the eye and squeezing her hands for a second as he said it.

In return, Ayano stared defenselessly into his clear, gray orbs.

All the words she was trying to say built up together inside her throat and her sentences were beginning to become lost.

He kept his eyes locked on hers, a stone-cold determination staining his expression.

"I-I . . ."

She sighed, finally looking away into the distant dark sky.

"It's nothing you can change or help. Everything's been said and done."

She was lucky she had averted her eyes, otherwise, she would've felt immediate guilt at the hurt that filled Taro's eyes in the course of a millisecond.

"A-are you sure that I can't help . . . ?" he asked, not wanting to give up even if she said he couldn't do anything.

"Not that I know of . . ."

More distress coated his eyes the same color as the clouds above them before he helplessly released her hands and continued walking.

Picking up her bike, Ayano quickly followed after him.

The two traveled down the sidewalk in silence.

 _Today's going to be just_ perfect _. . ._ Ayano thought in irritation, mentally emphasizing 'perfect.'

They entered through one of the many entrance doors and parted ways after that.

It was quite obvious without him saying anything that he needed his space for a bit.

So Ayano simply returned to the same routine of hers where she observed everyone's actions before class started.

She didn't realize how much she had missed doing that until she was running up to the roof to see what Oka Ruto was doing. She wasn't surprised to see her spying on Inkyu and Sakyu . . . again.

 _As long as she stays away from Taro . . ._

Before long, it was 8:00 in the morning, thirty minutes before class started, so Ayano made her way to classroom 2-1.

* * *

Lunchtime was the same as the morning; uneventful.

However, after all classes ended in the afternoon, Ayano had waited for Taro to come out of his class from a distant staircase. No matter what, she still wanted to make sure he got home safely.

She had her scissors hidden in her hands again, just in case.

He had been a bit late; helping a teacher, probably. But Ayano went into action when she finally saw him walk out of the classroom.

She stuck to the walls, following him all the way down to the lockers and out the school doors.

And that was when a certain purple-haired female came along.

"Hello, Taro," Kokona greeted, stopping right behind him, so when he turned around, he was a bit shocked at the small distance between them.

And he should've been; she was at _most_ two inches away from him.

Ayano swore under her breath and then stood right by the doors, watching carefully from inside.

Taro instinctively backed up, not used to being that close to anyone.

"So, are we still eating lunch together tomorrow?" she asked, her main purpose being to remind him so he wouldn't forget.

"U-uh . . ." He began to hesitate, for he was looking forward to reading during lunch the next day. "S-sure . . ."

Kokona's next action caused Ayano's heart to pound against her chest and eyes deepen.

She hugged him.

Taro uncomfortably returned the hug, wishing to not have his personal space invaded.

All the while, Ayano was fighting a war with herself in the distance.

But her uncontrollable self came out dominant.

By the time Taro had noticed Ayano walking towards them, he wouldn't have been able to stop her.

"No one touches my Senpai without punishment," she whispered against Kokona's neck, causing her eyelids to snap apart immediately.

Kokona felt a small blade pierce into the side of her neck, causing her to go lightheaded and stumble to the ground, unable to stand.

She reached her hand up towards Ayano as said killer hovered over her almost-dead body, scissors stained with her blood resting atop her heart.

"Have any regrets yet?"

And with that, Ayano forced down her small weapon, forcing blood out of her victim's mouth as well as staining her blade. Seconds later, her consciousness was truly gone for good.

Ayano placed her foot on Kokona's paralyzed stomach, removed the scissors from her bleeding chest, and turned around carelessly, for a brief moment forgetting that Taro was still there.

Her eyes widened when they met the sight of Taro's petrified figure.

"Y-you . . . killed her . . ."

She dropped the weapon on the ground by her feet, emitting the sound of metal bouncing off of another metal object.

"N-no . . . w-wait . . ."

"You killed her . . ." he repeated, still shocked and in fear.

" _Taro!_ "

Before they knew it, a figure with orange hair was clinging onto Taro, and as a result, Ayano gritted her teeth together.

"Are you okay?" Osana asked worriedly.

"Y-yeah . . ." Taro replied slowly.

"Did she do anything to you?"

"N-no."

Regardless of what anyone said, the same words were still running over and over in Taro's head.

 _I . . . I've been liking a murderer . . ._

Ayano quickly picked up her scissors, unexpectedly acting upon one final decision before she made a run for it.

She suddenly stabbed Osana in the back, forcing in the scissors as far as she could.

Osana shrieked in pain, blood soaking her uniform's white shirt.

"T-Taro . . ." she stuttered, on the cold ground next to the corpse of Kokona.

Taro's eyes widened to the size of saucers. He immediately took his phone out of his pocket, dialing 119 and threatening to press the Call button.

As quickly as she had taken the life from Kokona and severely injured Osana, Ayano knocked his phone out of his grasp, sending it slamming against the walkway and sliding down to almost meet the grass.

That was when her consciousness seemed to smack some sense into her.

She had taken it too far.

She suddenly wanted to be anywhere except for there.

She dashed out of the school gates, leaving behind traces of blood-covered footprints.

Taro was still so terrified that he could barely move.

After a bit, he walked towards his now slightly dented phone and picked it up, immediately proceeding in calling an ambulance, knowing most of the teachers were in the teacher's lounge. Even if they weren't, he knew they would ask him questions as to what he saw and what he didn't.

And, for some reason, a part of him didn't want Ayano to get her head chewed off for it.

The only explanation for that feeling left slight fear in his chest.

 _Do I really like Ayano . . . ?_

* * *

Ayano continued to stare at the dark environment around her.

She had ran home to change into another school uniform, as well as clean her weapon of any evidence of murder.

Just to be on the safe side, she was planning to bring another pair of scissors to school for the rest of the school year and beyond.

After that, she had ran to a nature park and was currently sitting on a rock staircase in the large landscape. By then, the sun was on the verge of setting, tinting the atmosphere in orange and dark purple.

She could hear footsteps behind her. She didn't bother turning around.

She could already sense it was Taro.

Who else would it be?

"Get away from me . . ." Ayano said emotionlessly. Her voice was quiet, almost distant. "I'm a monster."

There was shifting beyond her.

"No, you're not," she heard him argue. "Your emotions just took over you."

"Yes . . . I am . . ."

"Stop accusing yourself of something you're not!"

By the tone of his voice and his choice of words, Ayano could tell that he wasn't going to leave until she came with him.

 _Not this time._

"Like I said . . . Get away from me, Taro," she continued to oppose him, her tone still detached. "I've hurt everyone I come into contact with. I've killed people. I don't want to hurt you more than I already have. You deserve someone better than me."

She couldn't believe she was saying this.

She had been watching him all through school, hurting all the girls who had a crush on him one way or another, and even followed him on his way home.

And now she was telling him to leave her alone.

But then again, she didn't want to hurt him.

That would be the last thing she wanted.

Moments ticked by of utter silence.

"That might be true. I'm afraid of you for that reason. But it would put your own life in danger if I avoided you," he elaborated.

"Maybe that's just what I need."

"Huh?"

Ayano replied so quickly that he didn't know what she had said.

What he did hear, he didn't like.

"Maybe I just need to burn in Hell . . . That's the only place waiting for me now. My dad didn't care about me. My mom forced him to come to America with her. I've taken people's lives. I've even terrified you. I'm just going to end up rotting in jail. There's nowhere else for me to go."

Taro didn't know what to say to that.

What was he supposed to say?

". . . That doesn't mean that you deserve to lose your life."

Then it was Ayano's turn to remain silent.

"Get away, Taro. Run while you can. I don't want to hurt you," she repeated.

"No, Ayano!"

She shot up from her spot on the cold ground, finally turning to face him.

The sincere concern in his eyes caused her to hesitate. But her muscles tightened in fierce anger.

" _Would you please listen to me? You, of all people!_ "

" _I won't leave you hanging like this!_ " Taro claimed stubbornly.

The two were quiet as he inched toward Ayano, slowly placing his hands upon her shoulders.

"Please . . . don't go . . ."

She couldn't respond to his actions. It was as if that simple interaction made her break down into the person who couldn't raise their hand against anyone.

If only her past self could see the emotional mess she was now . . .

But she finally gained the courage to talk.

"I don't want to hurt you!"

To unintentionally prove her point, Ayano's hands flew up to meet his chest. She applied pressure against him, intent on pushing him away from her.

Except she used more force than she intended to.

The action sent him skidding backwards, but he regained his balance milliseconds before he could fall.

Her eyes widened at realization to what she had just done.

 _N-no . . ._

 _It can't be . . ._

Tears began to cloud Ayano's vision.

She forced herself to turn towards the blank field she was sitting beyond before, darting forward.

She wouldn't dare let Taro see her cry.

The raven-haired female could hear the distant calls of him behind her, as well as his rapid footsteps; just like before.

He was getting closer.

 _Dammit, why are you following me?!_

 _Why won't you leave me alone?_

Her sudden sadness was wearing her down. She couldn't run as fast as she usually could.

Taro was going to catch up to her any minute in the dark, night-stained field.

She had two options: A. Simply give up, or B. Keep running until she fell.

Or he caught her.

Whichever came first.

She just wanted to run away.

From all her mistakes.

From the light that brightened the day.

From the harsh, opposing life that she lived in.

But she couldn't dare herself to die.

If he got to her, she would lose again from the overwhelming sadness in his eyes. She would delay the fate waiting for her on the other side once more.

There wasn't anything good left for her.

The part of her that encouraged her to move forward was no longer present.

Ten seconds later, Taro was within reaching distance of Ayano.

 _Shit, shit, shit,_ she thought hurriedly.

Generally speaking, she was doing rather decent in not getting caught; but one time she didn't react fast enough.

Taro's fingers clenched around her shoulder, bringing her to an unexpected stop.

Before she could attempt to escape from his grasp, he placed the other hand on the opposite shoulder; somewhat similar to how they were earlier.

They were both panting of exhaustion for a few moments before they could actually say anything.

Ayano was the first to be able to talk.

"Taro . . . why do you do this . . . ?" She tried not to stutter or burst into tears right then and there. It was helpful that she was turned the other way. "Why do you always come back for me? I'm at the end of the line. Both of us know that. You need to stop denying the truth."

But the cold, serious tone continued from Taro.

"I'm not denying anything."

He turned her to face him, pulling her towards his chest; her cheek resting on his shoulder. His arms wrapped themselves around her, preventing her from leaving.

Even though she wouldn't move if she could.

His actions still enticed her.

He still made her be careless about everything but him.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't change that.

She couldn't adjust her heart's decision.

Ayano's tears escaped her gray orbs and fell onto Taro's shoulder as she returned the hug.

They remained silent while holding each other, Ayano uncontrollably crying at the large amount of sudden emotions she felt.

"What can I do to help?" Taro asked once more, leaning his cheek against her head.

She didn't reply for a bit, but when she finally did, both of them began to blush.

"I-I need you . . . I need you to be there for me . . . It's the most I could ask for someone like me . . ."

Taro tightened his arms around her.

"I'd do more than that for you . . ."

He placed a kiss upon her head of dark hair, causing Ayano's cheeks to darken their pink-tinted color.

"B-but why?" she questioned anyway.

"Because I love you," he replied simply, immediately regretting it as his face burned in realization to what he had said.

Ayano tearfully smiled, holding him somehow closer.

"That's funny, because I love you, too."

His eyes suddenly widened once more, just to return back to normal with the addition of a soft smile.

He pulled away from her to look her in the eye, staring into her intense gray irises.

Before he could stop himself, he quickly placed his lips upon hers, sending a wave of happiness through both of them.

Without hesitation, Ayano kissed him back, raising her hands to wrap around the nape of his neck.

All the while, Taro's words were still running through her mind, bouncing back and forth.

 _"Because I love you."_

* * *

 **Usual me wouldn't want to post this until the full game of Yandere Simulator is completed, but I got an idea and I fear that by the time the actual game is released, I'm not going to be interested in these ideas anymore ._.**

 **So in the future, don't be surprised if I alter my Yandere Simulator FanFictions a bit according to the game's updates.**

 **I know some of you are going to murder me for not putting Info-chan in this FanFiction. I couldn't find a way of fitting her into certain scenes without completely rewriting them or adding another conflict**

 _ **I'm sorrrrryyy!**_

 **Also, from what Taro said when he shared the umbrella with Ayano, I know that the actual rain doesn't give you a cold; it's the sensitivity that the rain and cold weather triggers in the body that makes you more open to sicknesses, but I couldn't think of anything else to say '^^**

 **Thank you for reading :3**

 **Credits:**

 **YandereDev | DeviantArt**

 **I do not own Yandere Simulator or the cover image. All rights go to their original owners.**


End file.
